Barcelona have renewed their interest in Chelsea’s David Luiz with the confirmation that Carles Puyol will leave the Spanish club this summer.

A bid of €30 million (£24.7 million) is expected for the 26-year-old Brazil international.

Barcelona hope to conclude a deal swiftly before the World Cup finals kick off in June, with Luiz an important figure in Luiz Felipe Scolari’s Brazil squad.

Barcelona had a formal bid for Luiz rejected last summer by Chelsea, with manager Jose Mourinho adamant that the defender was not for sale.

Although Luiz is not agitating for a move it is understood that he would be keen to join Barcelona and, given Mourinho’s recruitment plans – he has acquired French central defender Kurt Zouma from Saint-Etienne for £12.5 million and holding midfielder Nemanja Matic from Benfica for £21 million – he may consider selling.

If Luiz were allowed to leave it would be another sign that Mourinho still have faith in Chelsea captain John Terry, 33, who is set to be offered a one-year contact extension.

Barcelona may have to offer far more than €30 million, however, to acquire Luiz who was signed by Carlo Ancelotti from Benfica in a deal that was worth £21.5 million plus Matic.

Chelsea rejected Barcelona’s advances last summer, insisting that they wanted more than £50 million for Luiz in a successful attempt to kill any effort to negotiate.

Barcelona are understood to have offered only just over £20 million and while they are planning an increased bid, it may still not be enough to tempt Chelsea, with Mourinho ­continuing to publicly insist Luiz remains in his plans.

Bayern Munich also showed interest in Luiz, stopping short of making a formal offer, but Barcelona were always front-runners. Should he leave Chelsea Luiz will not remain in the Premier League.

Luiz is regarded as a big ­personality as well as a good player and is a strong character in the dressing room. There was some frustration with him at Chelsea earlier this season with the sense that he might have been unhappy at not being granted a move to Barcelona.

Puyol, meanwhile, confirmed ­yesterday that he would be leaving Barcelona at the end of the season.

The 35-year-old Spain international had a contract with Barça until 2016 but has reached an agreement with the club to rescind the final two years of the deal.

Puyol, who has spent his entire career at Barcelona so far and made his first-team debut in 1999, made the announcement at a press conference. He said: “I want to announce that at the end of the season I will no longer be a Barcelona player. There are three months of the season left and I will not give up. I will help the team.”

The defender, who signed his contract extension with Barca only a year ago, has endured 36 injuries in 15 campaigns, eight of which have been knee problems.

Puyol said: “After two recent surgeries, it has become harder to recover the level I demand of myself and that I need to be at to play here.”

As to what he plans to do after leaving the Nou Camp, Puyol admits he is not sure yet – save to take a break. “I don’t know what I will do after June 30,” he said. “But I’m sure that in the summer I will rest. I would like to have a press conference at the end of the season to say a proper goodbye after a total of 19 years at the club.”

Puyol came through Barca’s youth ranks, has made 593 appearances for the Catalan giants, and is the second-most capped player in the club’s ­history behind Xavi.

He has won six La Liga titles, three Champions League crowns, two Spanish Cups and two Fifa Club World Cups.

The veteran central-back has also been a pillar of the Spain side, making 100 appearances between 2000 and 2013.